A corpora



A. E. RHOAD ES.

PICK COUNTER FOR LOOMS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT-11,1916.

Patented Dec. 23,1919.

' vE/v 7.0 1? 7 A 7' TURN/5 2 enr ch.

manmwlummmm ALOIJZO E. RHOADES, 0F HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, T0 DRAPER CGR?ORATION, OF HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS A CORPORA- 'rron' or MAINE.

nae-5,911.;

Application filed September 11, 1918.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALONZO E. Rnoeons, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hopedale, county of lVorcester, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Pick-Counters for Looms, of which i counters for looms.

it is now the common practice in some weaving mills to pay the weavers according to the amount of clothwoven. The amount of cloth woven will depend on the total number of picks mafia by the loom in any period of time, and if the number of picks per unit of cloth length remains unchanged, the prod not will be of the uniform texture or grade desired. It is desirable, therefore, to readily ascertain at any time how many picks have been made by the loom since the last observation and knowing the number of picks per unit of cloth length in that particular grade of cloth the total length of cloth produced between the two observations is at once obtainable. An important feature of the present invention, therefore, consists of a simple and efficient device operatively connected to a running part of the loom for counting the number ofplcks woven during an interval of time, so that by taking the reading of the device at any time, and later again taking the reading, the difl'erence between the two will show the number of picks made during the interval, and. the last reading will show the total picks made, from whiehithe length of cloth produced is readily known.

The above characteristic of the invention and various other novel features will be herein fully described in connection with the accompanying drawing and then be particularly defined in the claims.

In the drawing: y

Figure 1 is a side view of a loom of any usual or desired character provided with the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged face view of the plck counter showing certain of the parts in dotted lines.

Specification 01' Letters Iatent.

PICK-COUNTER F017, LOOMS.

Patented Dec. 23, 1919. Serial No. 119,412.

Fig. 3 is a central vertical cross-section of the pick counter detached from the loom.

Fig. 4c is a perspective view showing certain of the parts of the pick counter in separated relation.

Fig. 5 is a like view showing other parts of the nick counter.

The loom frame and weaving devices connected thereto may be of any desired charactor, and in thepresent instance of the invention, the frame 1 has mounted thereon the crank shaft 2, the crank 3 of which is connected to the lay 4 by the itman or connection The lay is carried by the usual swords (S mounted to rock about a suitable support 7, the construction being such that on rotation of the crank-shaft the lay will be moved toward and from the front of the loom, as usual of this class of devices. Each time the lay moves back during the regular operation of the loom, the shuttle is picked to lay the filling in the shed, and on the following frontward movement the lay beats up the filling to the weaving point or fell of the cloth. Mounted on the loom frame below the crank-shaft is the under or cam shaft on which is mounted the gear 8 meshing with a gear 9 of one-half the number of teeth connected to the crank-shaft, the construction being such that both of said shafts operate in unison with the lay but at different rotative speeds, and if the numberof revolutions of either of these shafts is counted, the number of picks Woven is at once known.

The pick counter may be connected to either the crank-shaft or the cam-shaft or indeed to any part acting in an established relation with the lay,'but in the present instance it is shown as o erativel related to the cam-shaft. The pick counter may be supported by the loom frame, and as indicated by Fig. 1 it is supported on the outer side of the frame in order that its scale and action may be conveniently inspected.

The pick counter comprisesthe casing 11 having an edge flange 12 upon which is supported the bearings for a worm shaft connected to the cam-shaft of the loom. In the present instance of the invention the bearings 13 forthe worm shaft 14, project from a cap piece 15 which may be removably secured to the casing 11 by suitable 'from the cam shaft of the loom through the worm 17. The worm wheel 22 has project- 'ing therefrom the gear 23. This gear may conveniently be cast integral with worm wheel Surrounding the small gear 23 is a stationary internal gear 24. In the present 111- stance of the invention the gear 24 may be conveniently cast integral with the ring and the ring 25 may have the lugs 26 by which the ring and gear 24 may be secured to the casing 11 by means, such as the screws 27. The screws 27 may pass through the lugs 26 and be threaded into lugs 28 proje'cting from the casing 11, although, as w1ll be obvious to those skilled in the art, the internal gear 24 may be otherwise supported in fixed position. v

The pin 20 has loosely mounted thereon a second lnternally toothed gear provided with a difierent number of teeth than the fixed gear 24. In the present instance of the invention the loosely mounted gear is formed as a disk 29, which for convenience of identification may be termed the inner disk,

' through which extends the pin 20, hereinbefore described and a flange 31 from which project the teeth which constitute the internal gear 32, the construction being such that when the fixed internal gear 24 and the loose internal gear 32 are in assembled relation, as indicated in Fig. 3, an annular sac'e will be provided between these gears about the gear 23 for the reception of a traveling or floating gear 33, the teeth of which are operatively engaged with the small gear 23 and the teeth of both internal gears 24 and 32, as indicated in Fig. 3. As hereinbefore noted the gears 24 and 32 have a different number of teeth. In the present instance the gear 32 has one less tooth than the gear 24, the construction being such that as the worm wheel and itsattached small gear 23 rotate, the floating gear 33 will be caused to travel about the small gear and by reason of the difference in the number of teeth in the fixed and loose gears 24 and 32 respectively, the loose gear will be' moved relatively to the fixed gear a distanceof one tooth when the floating gear has made one revolution about the small gear 23.

" The casing and the several gears so far measudescribed may be variously formed, but the construction permits the parts to be cheaply In order that the fixed madeof castings. I internal gear 24 and the loose mternal gear 32,1nay be more accurately associated and maintained in operative relation with the floating gear 33, the face of the loose gear I flange 31 is provided with a groove 34 into i which extends a rim 35 extendingfrom the face of the fixed gear 24, see Figs. 3 and 4.

Fixed to the pin 20 or splined thereon, is a small gear 36, the fac of which rests against the outer face of the inner disk 29, The inner disk 29 carries a pin or support 37 between its periphery and axis on which is mounted a loose gear 38. Loosely mounted on the pin 20 is an outer flanged disk 39 of somewhat smaller diameter than the inner disk 2 and secured to or cast integral with the outer disk 39 1s a gear 40 of the same diameter as the gear36. Theteeth of the a v loose gear 38 carried by the disk 29 are of sullicient depth to mesh. with the teeth of both the fixed and loose gears 36 and 40 respectively. The teeth in the fixed and loose gears 36 and 40 respectively differ in num her, and in the present instance of the in'ven': tion, the loose gear 40 has one more tooth than the fixed gear 36, the construction being such that as the inner disk 29 is rotated,

as hereinbefore described, it will carry with.

it the loose gear 38 which will be rotated on its own axis by engagement with the fixed gear 36, and since the number of teeth in the fixed gear 36 is one less than the number in the loose gear 40, the latter and perforce the outer disk 39 will be moved or rotated the distance of one tooth each time the gear 38 completes its movement about the gears 36 and 40. In order that the pin 20' may conveniently provide a bearing for the outer disk and gear 40 without causing the gear 40 to bind against the fixed gear 36, the

pin 20 is provided with a shoulder or enlargement 41 on which the outer disk 39 and gear 40 are supported, the face of the shoulder 41 resting against the face of the fixed gear 36 when the parts are in assembled relation. The pin 20 has a head 42 to' rest against the face of the "outer disk 39 and maintain the parts in place when the pin is secured to the bearing 19 of the casing, as hereinbefore described.

Th inner disk 29 and the outer disk 39 are each cup shaped, the-face flange of the former in connectionwith the face flange of the fixed internal gear 24 providing the desired space for the travel of the floating gear 33, and the face flange of the disk 39bearing upon the outer surface of the inner disk 29 aflording between the two disks the space or housing for gears 36, 38 and 40, forming the transfer or carry mechanism.

From the construction described, it will be noted that each rotation of the cam shaft aeaaeii of the loom, which represents two picks,

will cause movement of the worm and worm wheel and, through the described connec tions, impart movement to the inner disk 29 and yet slower movement to the outer disk 39, face portions of each of said disks being in convenient view. The inner disk -29 and the outer disk 39, are each provided with a scale, the divisions of which represent a certain number of picks made by the loom,

and to facilitate reading the scale at a glance the cap is provided with a pointer 43 which overhangs the inner disk, as indicated by Fig. 3. If the numbered divisions of 15 the scale on theinner disk represent the picks in groups of a thousand, then the inner disk will register the number of picks up to thirty thousand, and the outer disk will register the total number of thirty thousand picks made by the loom. Knowing the number of picks in the cloth per unit of length or per inch, the total amount of cloth woven during any period is at once ascertained.

Claims: f

1. A ick counter for looms, comprising, in comb1nation, a casing having a shaft secured to and projecting beyond said casing, a worm wheel loose on said shaft, a Worm meshing with said wheel, mounted On said casing and adapted to-be attached to a loom shaft rotated in predetermined relation to the lay, a ring secured to said casing formed gear, a fixed pinion on said shaft received by said cup-shaped member, a floating gear meshing with said pinion and internal gears and received by said cuprshaped member, a smaller cup shaped dial member loose on said shaft, and transfer mechanism between said dials, said smaller dial member being arranged to house said transfer mechanism.

2. A pick counter for looms, comprising, in combination, a casing, outer and inner cup -shaped rotative members assembled with said casing and having dials thereon, said inner cup member and. easing having circumferential tongue and groove means for guiding said inner cup member, a fixed shaft projecting through saidinner cup member, a driving gear loose on said shaft and having a pinion fast thereon, internal gears fast on said casing and inner cup member having an unequal number of teeth, a floating gear meshing with said pinion and internal gears, transfer mechanism between said outer and inner cup-shaped rotative members, said outer member arranged to house said transfer mechanism.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

I ALONZO E. RHOADES, 

